


Not so Blind Dates

by Full_Moon_Lover



Series: 25 Days of Christmas 2017 [2]
Category: Phandom/The Fantastic Foursome (YouTube RPF)
Genre: (yet), Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Blind Date, Dan Howell Is Not A Youtuber, Getting Together, Implied Sexual Content, M/M, YouTuber Phil Lester
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-02
Updated: 2017-12-02
Packaged: 2019-02-09 18:54:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,578
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12894555
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Full_Moon_Lover/pseuds/Full_Moon_Lover
Summary: “We’re going on a blind date - but wait a moment, aren’t you the one that went down on me in the back alley behind a club last year?…What do you mean which one?”orthe one where Dan and Phil meet for the first time when they’re much older. They start off on the wrong foot but bond over Phil’s very useful editing tips.





	Not so Blind Dates

**Author's Note:**

> Day 2! I still haven’t quite grasped the fact that the 25 Days of Christmas have started. I’m quite surprised that it’s all planned pretty well this year and I’m not finding myself writing phanfiction at 10pm in a rush to get them done in two hours. I’ll stop talking and let you read the story now.

"I don't want to do this Louise." 

"Dan it's been more than a year since you last dated anyone. Everyone in our friend group is seeing someone and I don't want you to feel left out. Don't you think it's time to date again?" Louise said, exasperated. 

His friend wasn't lying. It had been a while since Dan last went out with anyone but he wasn't interested. He didn't mind being the only one in their friend group not seeing anyone and he was tired of dating just for the sake of it. 

Dan reasoned that if it was meant to be, it would happen. If he met someone he liked and wanted to go out with, he would but he wasn't searching for potential partners. 

Louise didn't seem to understand that. Dan knew his friend had good intentions, and she was only doing this because she thought it would make him happy. Dan just didn't see how a blind date helped him. 

As someone who considered himself to be awkward, Dan never left the best impressions during first dates. He always said the wrong thing, over shared and found himself with nothing to talk about. 

That was on dates with people he knew. He didn't want to think over what a mess he could make of things by agreeing to a blind date, without even knowing who the person was. 

He told Louise as much but she rolled her eyes. "If you're concerned over being too awkward, don't be. I set you up with a friend from work and he's just as awkward as you, if not more. So you have nothing to worry about. All you need to do is show up and at least try to have a good time. Do you think you can do that?"

Dan knew it was pointless to keep arguing. He knew Louise would not leave him alone until he agreed and agreeing to her blind date would at least get her off his back. Besides, all he had to do was show up and if things ended up going south, he could always leave. 

"Fine, we'll do this your way," he conceded. "But I only promise to show up. I'll only consider seeing him again if I genuinely like him and if I find myself not having a good time, I'm out of there." 

"Deal," Louise said, a smirk on her face from having gotten it her way. "I promise you'll have fun though. He's only a few years older than you and you have a lot in common so I'm sure you'll hit it off." 

Dan could only hope she was right. 

*

Dan shows up at the restaurant Louise booked them at, looking for someone with jet black hair in an emo fringe, wearing a blue shirt. Louise didn't even tell Dan his name in case he tried to look him up. 

When he catches sight of the person he was looking for, he froze. The guy is not a complete stranger. Dan was sure he had seen him at a club he went to the year before. If his memory wasn't failing him, it's the same guy who went down on him in the alley behind a club. 

Dan never got his name, but he wasn't likely to forget his face. He might have been a little tipsy at the time but it was a fun experience and Dan never forgot a good time. 

He considered leaving and asking Louise to apologise to his blind date for him but reconsiders. Dan doesn't want to be the asshole who ditches their blind date and leaves them waiting at the restaurant by themselves. 

Dan walked over to the table, a shy smile on his face. "Hi," he said, pulling out his chair and sitting down in front of his date. He half expected Phil to look at him in recognition but instead he smiled and introduced himself. 

"Hello," he said, holding out his hand to shake. "I'm Phil." 

Dan shook his hand. "I'm Dan." 

He was beginning to think Phil had no idea who he was. Even though in the beginning he hoped for that, Dan couldn't help but feel a little offended over having been forgotten. It's not as if he spent all his time thinking about Phil and what they shared in that alley, but at least he remembered his face when he saw him. 

"Aren't you the one that went down on me in the alley behind that club a year ago?" he blurted out. Dan almost slammed his hand over his mouth but it was too late. He had already said what had been going through his head and now he was stuck staring at Phil and awaiting his reply. 

Instead of Phil being embarrassed over having been called out in such a way, he scrunched his face up and looked at him in confusion. 

Dan was regretting ever agreeing to Louise's plan of a blind date. He took Phil's silence to mean he did not understand what Dan was talking about and he felt mortified. Had he mistaken Phil for someone else? 

"Which one?"

Dan was left staring at him in bewilderment. "What do you mean which one? How many people have you gone down on in alleys?" 

Phil shrugs, a smirk on his face. "Quite a few last year." 

Dan was speechless. What was he supposed to say to that? Phil was so used to getting blow jobs in back alleys he had to specify when he and Dan got together. 

He settled for shaking his head. "I don't remember the exact date, I remember your face. Good to know you do this often though." 

Dan didn't want to be judgemental. What right did he have to judge Phil for doing this often when he recognised him from doing the same thing? But, he could admit to himself that he was a little jealous. 

Not being someone who does this sort of thing often, Dan often thought back to the time spent with Phil in the alley with a feeling of excitement. It was a night where he stepped out of his comfort zone to have fun with an attractive guy. He couldn't forget that. 

To know it wasn't the same for Phil irritated him. The night was not as fun for the other man as it was for him and Dan must not have been as good at reciprocating as he thought. Phil didn't even remember him!

"My boyfriend of eight years broke up with me last year. I'd never been with anyone but him so, when he broke up with me, I thought it was the perfect opportunity to experiment a little," Phil explained. 

Dan could relate to that. He didn't appreciate that he was considered a part of an experiment, but he still understood where Phil was coming from. 

Phil looked at him with narrowed eyes, making Dan feel uncomfortable with the attention. His face broke out in a grin and he laughed. "I remember you now! You didn't last long when I went down on you." 

Dan could feel his face turn bright red. Phil recognised him and that's what he was remembered for? 

He stood up, intending to leave. "I don't think this was a good idea," he said. 

Dan agreed to this date to get Louise off his back not to be made fun of by his date. He should have known this would end badly. 

Phil looked at him in alarm, realising he may have taken it a little too far. "Wait! Don't go; I'm sorry. I wasn't trying to make fun of you, I promise. I was just teasing."

Dan wasn't too sure about that. To him, it sounded like Phil was trying to make fun of him over what had happened over a year ago, rather than just playful teasing. But Dan didn't want to seem like someone who makes a big deal out of something small. 

"Fine," he said, sitting back down. "But I wouldn't make any more comments about that night if I were you. Considering you didn't even remember me until a few minutes ago, I don't think your memories of that night are the most exact." 

Dan was glad his words made Phil look at least a little sheepish. Suits him right for making jokes over how long he lasted. He lasted an adequate time, thank you very much. 

He wasn't about to say as much to Phil though. Dan didn't want to see the smug look on his face if he did. 

An awkward silence settled over them. Dan didn't know what to say without bringing up that night and Phil was cautious, worried he would say the wrong thing again and offend Dan. 

Dan knew if the night kept going in the way it was, the date would be disastrous. He almost groaned out loud when he thought of Louise. 

She would not be happy to know he ruined their date within the first few minutes. Louise would be even more put off if Phil told her the date was ruined because Dan brought up the time he gave him a blow job behind a club. 

No doubt she would blame it all on him and then try to set him up on another blind date as soon as possible. If he could somehow convince Louise that things had gone well, then she would leave him in peace. 

Or at least she would give him a little break before she found out Dan did not plan on going on any more dates with Phil. 

Phil was the one to break the silence. "How about we start over?" he asked, hopeful. "We started off on the wrong foot but it doesn't have to stay like that. Shouldn't we at least try to have a nice time tonight while we're here? What do you say?" 

Dan agreed. "Fine, let's pretend that night never happened and today was the first time we saw each other. I'm Dan, I'm twenty six years old and I spend more time watching videos on YouTube than doing actual work," he said, hoping to break the ice. 

It got him a chuckle from Phil and he counted that as a win. "I'm Phil, I'm thirty and I think you'll be keen to know I make a living out of making videos on YouTube."

At first, Dan was positive Phil was pulling his leg again. Didn't he work with Louise? When he realised that he was being serious, he stared at him in admiration. 

"You're a youtuber?" he asked, impressed. 

Phil was embarrassed over the sudden attention he was getting from Dan but he nodded. "I've been doing for around ten years now. It's nothing big though, so I'm not surprised you've never seen me on YouTube." 

"Don't you work with Louise though?" Dan asked what had been on his mind since Phil told him about making videos. 

"Is that what she told you?" he asked, laughing. "Well, I guess you could put it like that. The company Louise works for sponsors my videos sometimes. Since Louise works in the publicity department, we met through that. She didn't mention the person I was going on a blind date with liked YouTube though." 

Dan was getting the feeling Louise set the whole thing up. She knew he spent more time watching videos than he should and he sometimes procrastinated on carrying out his actual work. That's why she kept insisting him and his blind date had a lot in common. 

"I think Louise is a lot more sneaky than I gave her credit for," he laughed. “I’ll check out your videos once I get home. Well, if you tell me your username.” 

“AmazingPhil,” he said with a sigh, already expecting the loud laugh Dan let out. “I know, I know. In my defence, I was young when I came up with it and thought it sounded cool. By the time I realised it wasn’t, it was too late to change it.” 

Dan was still chuckling but he couldn’t help but think it fit him. Besides, he’d seen much stranger usernames than that on YouTube. “I’ve always wanted to post videos myself but I’ve never had the confidence. Not to mention, I don't understand how it all works or what I would even post about.” 

Phil bit his lip. “You can come over to my place, if you want. I could show you my filming area and give you a few pointers. Maybe you could even give shooting a video a try by using my equipment,” he offered. “I’ve been told that I give mean editing tips.” 

"Is this your way of asking me to go to your place?" Dan asked, a smirk on his face. 

Seeing Phil blushing filled him with great joy. It was good to get back at him for how much he embarrassed him in the beginning even if it was just playful banter. 

"That's not what I meant," Phil said, pouting when he realised Dan was messing with him. "Are you coming or not?" 

"Fine, but I make no promises I'll film anything worth posting. I'm just curious to see a youtuber's setup," he said. "Also, you have to promise there'll be no funny business. Just because I'm coming over doesn't mean I'm interested." 

Phil had not been expecting anything of the sort, he was just offering to be nice. He knew why Dan might think that though so he nodded. "I promise. I'll just show you my equipment and explain how everything works. At the most we'll watch a movie or something. Deal?"

"Deal." 

*

When Dan woke up the next morning, in a bed that wasn't his own and with Phil's arm wrapped around his waist, he couldn't help but smile. 

Dan turned over to look at him and found Phil already staring at him, a fond grin on his face. He leaned in for a kiss and Dan let him, enjoying the affection and early morning cuddling. 

Phil pulled back and Dan rolled his eyes when he saw him smirking. "Just by the look on your face, I can already tell whatever you're about to say is stupid, so just don't say it." 

"I told you I offer mean editing tips," he said, ignoring him. 

Dan slapped his arm playfully and rolled his eyes even though the wide smile on his face gave his true feelings away. "You're an idiot." 

"But you like me anyways," Phil said. He wanted to sound nonchalant but Dan could tell he was waiting to see what he would have to say to that. 

"I do, but I'll like you a lot more when you take me on a proper date. One that doesn't involve you criticising my sexual abilities. Or going to a restaurant and ordering nothing." 

Phil laughed, but he didn't disagree. "I promise to take you on a proper date if you promise me to upload the video you filmed yesterday. I don't care what you say, it's a great video Dan." 

Dan sighed. He still was unsure over the video he filmed, using Phil's camera and equipment. Phil had helped him out a lot, but he was still unsure of whether it was any good to upload. 

He knew by saying no, he would only put off the inevitable though. Phil could be persuasive when he put his mind to it. 

"I promise."

**Author's Note:**

> Day 2, done and dusted! Hope you enjoyed and please do let me know what you think. If you’re someone who enjoys ‘enemies to lovers’ stay tuned for Day 3, I have a feeling you’re going to enjoy it.


End file.
